Love is Blind
by cowgirlangel95
Summary: Fic requested by Boris Yeltsin: It was a normal date night for Riley and Lucas as they headed home. That is, until something happens that could change one, if not both, of their lives permanently.
1. Chapter 1

_**A/N: I hope you enjoy this fic requested by Boris Yeltsin. It's only a few chapters long, but I hope it's still worth it for you guys.**_

 _ **Disclaimer: I don't own Girl Meets World**_

Riley and Lucas headed down the sidewalk after another fun filled evening. Lucas had taken her to a romantic dinner, and then to a play Riley had wanted to see for a while. As they continued on down the side of the street, Riley kept on praising on how well the show was done. Lucas couldn't help but smile as he watched her carry on about the performance; she looked so cute the way her face seemed to light up. He would do anything to make her happy.

"…I mean, no one else can top what they did tonight! I wish I could go see it again," she continued.

Lucas smiled as he wrapped his arm around her shoulders. "Well, maybe we can do something about that."

The two of the stopped on the street corner and waited for the light to change. Despite the little traffic in the area, at the moment, anything could come through within a matter of moments.

Riley's eyes brightened. "Really? You'd do that for me?"

Lucas chuckled as he nodded. "Of course. I'd do anything for you. Next weekend sound good to you?"

She nodded as the light changed. "Yes! Oh my gosh, I can't wait now!"

"Well, you're going to have to," he teased.

As they headed into the crosswalk, Riley continued to ramble about the show. Lucas continued to listen to how cute she sounded, but the screeching of tires reached his ears. He looked up and was met with the headlights of a car that had run a red light. And it was coming right for them.

He hesitated only for a second, but once the 'deer in the headlights' feeling fleeted, he felt his body take action. "Riley! Look out!" Lucas shouted as he shoved them both out of the way.

The car horn blared as they both met the asphalt, and it kept on going, not even bothering to stop to see if they were okay.

Pain shot through Lucas' side as he landed on the other side of the road. He let out his breath as his heart continued to pound in his chest. That was all far too close for his comfort, but majority of the time you don't get a say in these types of things. _Probably a drunk driver,_ he concluded.

"Are you okay, Riley?"

No response.

Lucas raised an eyebrow and propped himself on his throbbing arm. "Riley?" he repeated as he turned her over onto her side and brushed her hair out of her face. She was out cold. Fear gripped Lucas' heart as he put his hand underneath her head to prop her up, but his hand was greeted by something warm and sticky. He looked down at the ground and saw a pool of her blood spreading through the dirt.

"No… no, no, no!" he muttered as he pulled out his phone to dial 911 with his clean hand. Once the ambulance arrived a few minutes later and the paramedics brought Riley inside, he placed another call. For him, it seemed like it took forever for anyone to pick up on the other end, especially with his heart beating in his ears.

"Hello?"

"Mr. Matthews?" he asked in a shaky voice. "It's Lucas."

"Lucas? Is everything okay?"

"Uh, well… no. Riley's been in an accident."

OoOoO

Lucas sat in the waiting room, waiting impatiently for any news on Riley. A few moments later, Cory, Topanga, and Maya came through the hospital doors and approached him.

"Any news yet?" Topanga asked.

Lucas shook his head. "No… nothing yet. I'm just really sorry about what happened."

"Don't be," Cory replied. "If you weren't there, who knows what could have happened. Things could be a lot worse right now."

"Agreed," Maya added, hoping to help settle his nerves a bit.

After a few more minutes, one of the doctors came out. "Riley Matthew's family?"

Cory raised his hand. "Right here."

He approached the group and smiled. "Hi, I'm Doctor Adams, it's a pleasure to meet you all."

"Likewise," Cory agreed, "so how's Riley doing?"

"She's doing pretty well. She has a mild concussion and some stiches to close the gash in the back of her head, but she should be fine. We'll know for sure once she regains consciousness and we run a few more tests."

A collective sigh came over the group. It was such a relief for everyone to hear, especially Lucas.

"Can we see her?" Maya asked.

Dr. Adams smiled. "I don't see why not. Come with me."

Everyone followed the young doctor down the hall. "Her room is right here. However, I must ask you to keep your visit short. We still have some –"

An ear piercing scream shot through the air and interrupted the doctor… and it was coming from inside Riley's room.

Everyone burst inside to see Riley in her bed, wide eyed and tears streaming down her face as if she was in shock. Lucas rushed over to her side and took ahold of her hand, hoping to comfort her some.

"Riley… Riley! It's okay, I'm here. Look at me; everything's going to be fine," he reassured.

But she shook her head. "I can't! I can't see!"

OoOoO

Riley's family waited by the door, hoping for any sort of news. Lucas had slumped to the floor, and Maya was kneeling near him.

"You okay?" she asked.

Lucas shook his head. "No… I just want everything to work out. I want Riley to be okay."

"She will be. Everything will work out, okay?"

"I know… I just feel partially responsible."

Maya shook her head. "Don't do that to yourself. You _know_ that if you weren't there, all of this would be a lot worse."

Before Lucas could respond, the door to Riley's room opened and Dr. Adams stepped out. Lucas and Maya stood up and waited with baited breath.

"There looks as if there's some sort of pressure on her optic nerve, causing her blindness. There's nothing that I can do… all we can do is wait to see if it corrects itself. But, there is a chance that her condition may not improve."

 _ **A/N #2: Well, I'll leave you guys there for now. Hope you enjoyed it so far! More to come in the (hopefully) near future. Be sure to leave a review on the way out! I love hearing what you guys think :)**_


	2. Chapter 2

_**A/N: Time for chapter 2! I tried something different when writing this chapter; it wasn't deliberate, it just kind of happened, but I like how it turned out. So I hope you like it too!**_

 _ **seddieshay: Aw! Don't worry that you can't reply, I know that technology can be a jerk sometimes :)**_

Riley was curled up in the corner of the couch, listening to some music her mom put on. Both of her parents thought it would be best if she stayed home for a couple of days to recover from her concussion, and Riley couldn't disagree. While she hated missing school, it took her a while to recall what two plus two was… if she could barely recall simple math, how would her classes go? Heck, could she even remember her schedule? Riley tried to focus on what order she had her classes to no avail. The only one she remembered for sure was her father's class first thing in the morning.

She sank into the couch and sighed. Riley could hear her mother's footsteps somewhere behind her, probably in the kitchen making dinner. While Riley was happy to be home, she wished she could get up and do something. She knew the apartment like the back of her hand… when she could see that is. It had been three days, and there were no signs of improvement. At this point, Riley was desperate for some sort of miracle. It wasn't the fact that she couldn't see that bothered her, it was the fact that she felt lost in her own world; one she had known for nearly fifteen years.

Both Maya and Farkle had come over the other day to see how she was doing. Riley was glad to have them over at first, but the day soon turned into a mess. She was bumping into anything and everything; Maya and Farkle had to keep a constant watch on her if she wanted to go do anything. After a while, Riley gave up on trying to do anything, and settled on staying in the living room to chat with them. Riley knew that both of them would do anything for her, but she hated having to rely on others almost twenty four seven.

And the worst part was, she didn't even know how to start becoming 'independent' again.

She hadn't heard from Lucas since the accident, but Riley also knew before the accident happened that he had some plans over the weekend with his family. So she was hoping that he would stop by sometime soon.

As if on cue, the intercom buzzed and Lucas' voice filled the room.

Riley heard her mom trot over to the intercom and buzzed him in. Once the door opened, the two spoke to each other for a brief moment before Topanga announced, "I'm headed back to the office, shout if you need anything."

"Will do," she responded.

Another brief moment passed before she heard Lucas say, "Hey."

"Hey."

"I'm sorry I didn't call or anything while I was away."

"It's okay. You were with your family, and they needed you there."

Lucas chuckled lightly. "I may have been there physically, but mentally, I was here with you. How are you doing?"

She shrugged. "I'm good."

Riley heard Lucas let out a nervous chuckle as she felt the middle of the couch give underneath his weight. "I know your 'I'm good's' and that wasn't it."

Riley bit her lip and tilted her head downwards. "Sometimes I think you know me too well."

"That can be a good thing… will you tell me what's wrong?" he asked with concern lacing his voice.

Riley paused a moment. "I'm scared. I just don't know what to do about… you know."

She felt Lucas wrap his arms around her. "No matter what happens, I'm here to help you, okay?"

"But I can't get around the apartment without help, and I hate relying on others for almost everything. You should have seen me this past weekend… I don't think Maya and Farkle knew what to do with me. I know I'm clumsy, but that was something else."

"I highly doubt that; they probably did what they thought was best."

"And that would be catching a falling Riley every five minutes. All I want is to not feel that helpless anymore."

He took ahold of her hands. "Stand up."

"What?"

"Stand up, I wanna try something."

At first, Riley was a bit hesitant, but she did as Luas asked.

Once she was standing, Lucas led her over a few steps and placed her hand on the edge of the couch. "I did some research, and a lot of the time, those who are blinded count their steps between, so called, landmarks, such as furniture, steps, and doorways. This helps them make a map in their minds. Also, they can judge distances by how sound bounces off of objects, since their hearing tends to be a bit sharper. It can be a bit harder for those who haven't been blind their whole lives, but they're able to pick it up with some practice. I figure we can start with the mind map, so to speak."

"Lucas," Riley began, "I don't know if I can do this."

She felt Lucas tighten his grip on her hands. "I know you'll be able to do it because I'll be with you the entire time. Ready?"

After another brief hesitation, Riley nodded he head, and the two began. They took each step very slowly, allowing Riley to be sure of herself as they went, and for Lucas to warn Riley of any steps that were in front of her. After the first round, Riley asked if they could go around again, to which Lucas agreed.

The two teens went around the apartment four times, and Lucas' warnings got fewer and fewer. Once they were done for the day, Riley and Luas sat back down on the couch, and Lucas filled her in on the events of the past school day, including the homework, to which he happily helped her with.

After they had finished, Riley rested her head on Lucas' shoulder. "Thanks… for everything. It was a great help."

She felt Lucas kiss the top of her head. "Anything for you, city girl."

As they leaned back on the sofa, Riley smiled to herself. _Maybe this adjustment won't be as difficult as I originally thought._

"Is there anything that you want to do at the moment?" Lucas asked.

Riley sighed as she shook her head. "Can you just be with me?"

"Of course."

 _ **A/N #2: Hope you liked it! I'm hoping to have the third and final chapter up soon. Currently working on it, so cross your fingers!**_


	3. Chapter 3

_**A/N: Hey all! Here's the final chapter! I'm sorry it's a bit on the short side… I couldn't think of anything else to add.**_

Even though a week had passed and Riley's vision had yet to improve, her entire situation had improved greatly. She was able to move about her family's apartment freely, and had also returned to school. All of her friends had to help her weave through the sea of students to get her to her classes. The one benefit of not being able to see was that she didn't notice if anyone was starting at her as she made her way down the hall. However, she did hear the whispers. When she did hear them, they didn't last long. Maya would snap at them, while Lucas and Farkle helped usher Riley along. Every once in a while, Riley would let those whispers get to her, even though she knew there was absolutely nothing she could do to change it.

Whenever this happened, Luas would wrap his arm around her shoulder and whisper, "Don't let them get to you, they just don't understand."

Now that the weekend had started, she had a little bit of time to relax. Although she was only in school for three days, it wiped her out. From focusing through the effects of her concussion to her new developing habits… it was quite a bit to handle.

As she was listening to some music on the couch, the intercom sounded.

"It's Lucas!"

Riley raised an eyebrow as she slowly made her way over to the door and ran her hand over the wall to find the intercom's button. "Come on up," she responded.

The door opened after a few moments, followed by Lucas' voice. "Hey, are you ready?"

"Ready for what?" she asked in a confused tone.

"You don't remember?" Lucas replied, Riley noticing a hint of a smile in his voice.

"Considering that certain parts of my memory haven't been very reliable this past week, I'd say no."

She felt Lucas take ahold of her hand. "Come on, let's go."

"Go where?"

"Not saying. If you don't remember then it's going to be a surprise!"

Riley shook her head, but she followed Lucas' lead as they headed out of the apartment and onto the sidewalk.

After quite a bit of walking and weaving around people, she heard Lucas let out a satisfied sigh. "We're here."

"And where's here?"

"Just listen."

She did as she was told and tuned out the noise around them. Off in the distance, she heard sounds of different instruments, ranging from strings to brass, either playing a few measures in a song or trying to tune themselves.

"You brought me to the show again?" she replied, stating the fact and asking him at the same time.

"Yeah. I promised that we could go see it again before it left, and now… maybe you can experience the same thing in a different way."

Riley felt her eyes start to brim with tears. "Thank you… this really means a lot to me."

"Anything for you."

OoOoO

" _Now_ where are we going?"

Lucas laughed as he led her down the sidewalk. "I figured we'd meet up with Maya and Farkle at your mom's place. So, did you enjoy the show?"

It was Riley's turn to laugh, something Lucas barely heard this past week. "You know I did, but just being able to listen to the music and the characters' dialogue gave it such a different dynamic."

As the two walked into the bakery's doors, they were greeted by Maya's voice.

"What's up, weirdos?"

Riley smiled as she sat down. "Surviving," she returned.

"No, really… how are you doing, Riles?"

"Better than I have been. If this is permanent, I know I still have a long road ahead of me, but I think I'll be able to do it. Especially if you guys are here to help me."

"We've always have been, and we always be here for you, Riley," Farkle added.

OoOoO

Riley awoke with a sudden jolt, despite it still being late at night. Darkness surrounded her, but there was something different about it than the one she had grown to know this past week.

She could see some light coming from her window.

Riley squeezed her eyes shut and reopened them, now being able to see the outline of her bay window. As the minutes passed, she was able to see more and more, soon to the point where she could see everything around her, despite the night filling her bedroom.

But everything she knew was surrounding her. Her dresser, her desk, her mirror… _everything_ could be seen clearly!

She shot up to a sitting position in her bed and let out a quiet squeal. Even though she now knew that she was going to be able to see everything around her for the rest of her life, Riley now had a new found respect for those that wouldn't be as lucky as she was. Not being able to see wasn't a cement wall, it was an opportunity.

Riley reached over to her phone and shot off a text to Maya, Farkle, and finally to Lucas.

 _Hey. Guess who will be able to see you tomorrow :)_

 _ **A/N #2: And there you are! Sorry if it seemed to fizz out at the end there, but I hope you enjoyed it overall. ~cowgirlangel95 out!**_


End file.
